Young treble, dancers join
A Cappella Choir for Nov. 17
“Music of the Americas”

A young boy’s beautiful treble, dancers and the magnificent Manchester University organ will join the A Cappella Choir in its Nov. 17th performance of “Music of the Americas.”

The Sunday afternoon tribute to North, Central and South America opens at 3 p.m. in Cordier Auditorium on the North Manchester campus. Tickets are $5; free for MU students, faculty and staff.

“Chichester Psalms” by Leonard Bernstein, scored for chorus, harp, percussion and organ, features the young treble of Josef Thomson of Huntington. The text of the sizeable, three-movement piece is sung in Hebrew. The organist is Alan Chambers, lecturer of music.

For "Lamentations of Jeremiah" by Argentinian composer Alberto Ginastera, the Mikautadze Dance Theatre of Fort Wayne will join the choir.

“This piece was not originally composed for dancers, but I felt the emotional transformation exhibited in the text and the music would be greatly enhanced by physical movement -- especially in a big hall like Cordier Auditorium,” said Debra Lynn, MU director of choral music. “It is an amazing work, but much of it is very subtle – so the contemporary dancers will really help depict the meaning of the Latin text. “

Also on the program: "Stomp Your Foot" and "The Promise of Living" from Aaron Copland's The Tender Land opera about the American heartland. Two Manchester High School dancers, Eryn Lynn and Clayton Marcum, will share the stage. “We’ll also sing music from Brazil and Costa Rica,” Lynn added.

The A Cappella Choir is an auditioned ensemble of 45-50 students that celebrates the musical talent that spans the Manchester University campus. In fact, most members are not music majors. The choir performs throughout the school year and tours in the spring. The A Cappella Choir has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Vatican, in cathedrals throughout Italy and other prestigious venues.